Allelopathy of aqueous Pachyrhizus erosus L. extracts on Euphorbia heterophylla and Bidens pilosa

Abstract

Allelopathy contributes to the sustainable management of weeds in growing areas, due to its ability to inhibit the development of weed species. This study aimed to evaluate the allelopathic effect of Pachyrhizus erosus extract on Euphorbia heterophylla and Bidens pilosa germination. The experiment was carried out in a completely randomized design, in a 2 x 2 x 4 factorial scheme, with four replications. The first factor corresponded to the plant portion (shoot and tuberous root), the second to the extract preparation method (water at room temperature and boiling) and the third to the extract concentrations (0 %, 25 %, 50 % and 100 %). Phytochemical analyses were performed to identify the presence of secondary metabolites. The variables germination percentage, germination rate index and dry biomass decreased with increasing aqueous extract concentrations for both E. heterophylla and B. pilosa. When applied a P. erosus crude shoot extract (boiling), decreases of 18 % and 92 % were observed in the E. heterophylla and B. pilosa germination, respectively, with a decrease of 91 % in the dry biomass of E. heterophylla seedlings. The tuberous root extract (boiling), on the other hand, reduced the germination percentages for E. heterophylla and B. pilosa in 18 % and 80 %, respectively. The phytochemical evaluation indicated the presence of flavonoids, coumarins and saponins in the shoot and tuberous root extracts, while tannins were only observed in the shoot extract. Thus, it can be concluded that P. erosus extracts display an allelopathic effect on the weed species evaluated.